For most people reading this, the year 2020 will have been one of the most challenging they have experienced. Normality slipped away, contacts became dramatically reduced, we lived in caution and worry. Jobs were lost. For some, there was illness with a long road to recovery. More tragically, some people experienced loss and death of family members, friends or colleagues.

On the bright side, there was change. Working from home saved time, there was less pollution as humankind's impact on Planet Earth lessened. The process of transforming to a sustainable economy and way of life has accelerated. Here is an article asking if 2020 has re-wired our brains echoing much of what I think and feel.

Trump was voted out, one of the highlights of my year. For people in the know of the Bach flower remedies, he again displayed a stunning range of negative states: denial, arrogance, dishonesty, pettiness, lack of empathy and leadership, ignorance, hurt and wrath, and mindboggling narcissistic self-absorption. The list is long. His campaign got hold of my email via Facebook and spammed me for months with vile emails. I deleted my fb account and I can't say I miss it. The world sighed in relief at Trump's election loss (but over 70 million US voters didn't). The incoming Biden administration is a source of hope.

We learned to connect online. Another highlight of my year was the Bach Centre’s BC-ACE programme which gave me an opportunity to bring fields together that I have been passionate about for many years: photography, the remedies, botany and teaching. I gave a course to show participants where to find and how to recognise the beautiful herbs, bushes and trees that are used to make the remedies. I had a lot of preparation to do as I’d never hosted a large Zoom meeting before. I spent time looking earnestly at my Larch and Mimulus bottles, preparing courageously for technical online glitches and hitches. Happily, everything went well from that side of things. I got to know new colleagues from Argentina, Vietnam, Iceland, Croatia, UK, USA, Switzerland, Malasia, Indonesia, India, Greece, Bulgaria, Brazil, Dubai, France and Germany. What I hadn’t prepared for was the wide-awake, mindful, attentive and heart-warming gathering of Bach remedy-informed people which really touched me. It was an inspiring global encounter with a wealth of interesting questions on the botany of the plants used to make the remedies. The course will be taking place again in March 2021. Details are here.  Another BC-ACE course will be taking place in January. The topic is mindful communication.

And I fell in love in 2020; with my little new grandson. I was fascinated with experiencing how his awareness gradually opened up. I watched his way of steadily looking at something new (and nearly everything is new when you are only 6 months old). How soft and gentle his touch is when he reaches out. His excitement and openness about living. At the end of the year, it is fair to say that I think I learned the most from him. And then there was my deep admiration for his mum and the millions of women around the world who courageously gave birth during the pandemic.

I look forward to 2021. I'll be completing my PhD on maternal health and new possibilities open up and call. I'm excited about the future and trust we'll get the pandemic under control. I wish everyone a safe, healthy and Happy New Year.